Contador will skip the Tour de Suisse and Criterium du Dauphine, the traditional Tour-lead up races.

“The only thing that maybe he should ride is the national championships in Spain. I would basically like to see him ride both the road race and the time trial, but we will see about that a little later,” Riis said.

Contador may not race, but will make a trip to France to pre-ride some of this year's key stages, Riis said. It has not yet been decided which teammates will accompany him.

There are still 14 teammates in the running to be amongst the eight to support Contador in the Tour, and Riis hopes to name his final nine before the Danish championships, to be held the end of this month. “There are 14 riders in the game for the Tour. Now we see how it goes in the Dauphiné and in Switzerland.”

Related Riders

Related Teams

Cyclingnews Newsletter

Sign up to the Cyclingnews Newsletter, from Immediate Media Company Limited. You can unsubscribe at any time. For more information about how to do this, and how we hold your data, please see our privacy policy